FIC: Haat'Mand'alor be Yaim'ol ~ Star Wars ~ Obi-Wan/Jaster ~ Mature ~ Chapter 7/10
Title: Haat'Mand'alor be Yaim'ol
Fandom: Star Wars
Author: Batsutousai
Rating: Mature
Pairing: Obi-Wan Kenobi/Jaster Mereel
Warnings: Time travel, canon-typical violence, fix-it (apparently), not everyone dies/some live, the Kaminoans are the worst, Jaster is the Mand'alor we deserve, character death, the clones deserve better, Jaster has 3 million grandkids, mental manipulation, Mandalorian culture, Mandalorian morality, an excessive amount of murder (of Kaminoans), Jedi culture respected, Jango needs a hug, Rex needs a hug, Fox needs a hug, EVERYONE GETS A HUG (except the Kaminoans), asexual Jango, nonbinary clones, trans clones, polyamory mention, disabled characters, happy ending
Summary: Jaster Mereel doesn't die on Korda VI, but is instead thrust forward thirty years to Kamino.
Part 1/2
Before anything else could be said, someone pounded on their flat door, and then it opened and a voice Jaster recognised as belonging to one of the jedi who had come with Yoda, called, "Obi-Wan! The Council just comm'd!"
Obi-Wan jumped out of his chair and raced for the door. "And?"
"We have confirmation."
"Kriff. Everyone on Coruscant?"
"Bad news, that is," Yoda replied, voice so grim, Jaster felt like an icy hand had just gripped his spine. "When to arrest him, the Council went, a hologram they found."
Jaster couldn't see Obi-Wan's face, but he was familiar enough with his riduur's body to see the way his spine went stiff and his shoulders tight, even under the disguising layers of his tunics. "How long?" he asked, and Jaster didn't recognise his voice, low and grim, like someone who knew they were facing impossible odds.
"Know, we do not," Yoda replied, equally grim. "If headed this way, already here, he may be."
"Alor?" Seventeen asked, just the slightest hint of a shake in their voice.
When Obi-Wan turned to face them, Jaster saw himself in his riduur, jaded and guarded like someone who knew they were being hunted, and that every second before they were attacked was both precious, and too little. This was the face of a verd, of an alor who had been to war before, and knew they were heading to war again.
Jaster shuddered in spite of himself, even as he felt his own spine stiffening, the familiar cool logic of battle preparation pushing away everything else.
"The final sith is currently among the stars," Obi-Wan said, tone cold and grim. "I think we all know exactly where he's going to be headed."
"Here," Jaster said with painful certainty.
Obi-Wan inclined his head, then turned to Anakin and...hesitated, just for a moment, something almost like grief flickering across his face. "The sith lord is Sheev Palpatine, the Chancellor of the Republic."
"No," Anakin said, firm and completely unbending.
"Anakin-" Obi-Wan started, sounding more like a buir and less like an alor.
"Where's your proof?" Anakin demanded, just a hint of a snarl. "You always think the worst of him, but you never have any-"
Obi-Wan held out a hand to summon to himself a datapad Jaster had sometimes seen him with, but never got a good look at, which he turned on and handed to the jet'ad.
Anakin went white and dropped back into the chair he'd started to rise from with a 'thud'.
Yoda hobbled his way into the flat and let out a huff as he rested both of his claws atop his cane. "With the very young, you will go. Protect them, you will," he stated.
"You can't just-"
"Anakin," Obi-Wan interrupted. "Palpatine was your friend, and no one will begrudge you that. No one," he stressed, shooting a pointed look at the three clones. "We currently have four master duellist jedi in residence, another ten who are capable, over seventy Mandalorians, twenty-three non-Mandalorians who have survived an adulthood in the outer rim, and hundreds of battle-ready clones. There is no reason you have to face him."
"Indecision, lives can cost. Guarantee, can you, that indecision you will not suffer?"
"...no," Anakin admitted in a small voice.
Yoda grunted.
"Ani," Obi-Wan said gently, and Anakin's shoulders curled inward. "If we put you with the littles, it's because we trust you to keep them safe, should the worst happen and the sith gets past the rest of us. We're entrusting thousands of young lives to you, but only if you think you can do so."
Anakin straightened, at that, shoulders going back and chin going up. "Yeah. Yes. I can do that. They- they're Rex's siblings, and-" he glanced at Jaster, just a hint of humour sparking in his pale eyes, "-they're your grandchildren, Master."
Obi-Wan, endearingly, looked a little like a bantha caught in a speeder's headlights. "Oh," he said faintly.
Yoda barked out a surprisingly loud laugh and thumped Obi-Wan's shin with his cane. "Later, celebrate we will," he declared. "Now, a battle to plan have you, hm?"
"Me?!"
Yoda's ears and eyebrows went up and the cane thumped against Obi-Wan's shin again, making him grimace and take a step away. Yoda huffed, then said, "Lead in war before you have, yes? More recently than I."
"I- Yes?" Obi-Wan agreed uncertainly, and Jaster saw all three adult clones coming to attention at that revelation, while Anakin let out a quiet sound of confusion.
"Aware you are, hmm, of the strengths, the capabilities of all? More than I? More than Mand'alor Mereel?"
Obi-Wan closed his eyes and muttered what sounded suspiciously like curses, then sighed and nodded. "Yes," he agreed, sounding tired.
When Obi-Wan looked over at him, Jaster smiled and admitted, "I wouldn't have the faintest what to do with your jedi, Ob'ika, or how best to support them; I'm going to have to follow your lead."
"I know." Obi-Wan let out another sigh, rubbed at his eyes, and then straightened. Between one blink and the next, he went from Jaster's tired riduur, to an alor, pale eyes too-sharp in the same way Yoda's had been, as though he'd inherited that particular trait through his jedi lineage. "Rex, you and your squad are staying with Anakin. Pull a squad of CTs that you trust to help you."
Rex saluted. "Understood, Alor," he agreed, and immediately stepped away to comm those he needed to.
Obi-Wan set Fox in charge of corralling the CTs and cadets who were skilled enough to fight, but hadn't yet undergone surgery, and they raced from the flat, already snarling orders into their comm to round up whatever CTs Rex hadn't claimed, who had been released from the medbay, and all of the CC squads-save Rex's Gamma and those who had replaced the Cuy'val Dar at necessary stations, such as comms and watching Kamino space-since Obi-Wan had said they would be better served acting as a bulwark against the chance that the dar'jetii managed to activate so many chips.
At Obi-Wan's request, Seventeen supplied a map of the city, and those of them left-Jaster, Obi-Wan, Seventeen, and Yoda, once Rex had thought to follow Fox's lead and dragged his jedi with him to set up their post, arguing with one of his vode through the comm the whole time-picked out the best places to station mixed squads of Cuy'val Dar and Alpha and Null clones, each accompanied by one of the ten merely capable jedi duellists. (All of them agreed that they would be better served keeping their best duelists in a centralised location, so they would be able to make it as a whole group to whichever group stumbled over the dar'jetii first, instead of in ones or twos. They did not, after all, know anything about the dar'jetii's duelling abilities, beyond Obi-Wan's grim certainty that they were unlikely to be a slouch.)
Obi-Wan was the one to build the teams of Cuy'val Dar, clones, and jedi, rattling off names-or designations, for those Alphas who, like Seventeen, had preferred to stick with their number, or who simply hadn't shared their chosen name with Obi-Wan yet-seemingly off the top of his head, only pausing to think a couple of times. After every list of names, he would glance between Jaster and Seventeen, a silent request for any suggestions or differences of opinion, but neither of them ever had any.
Every group Obi-Wan named, Jaster realised, after the third one, would be capable of working together without fighting amongst themselves-or, if there was a chance that they might start arguing, there would be someone there to mediate-while also formed to cover each other's weaknesses. And, each group had combatants, other than the jedi, who wouldn't hesitate to fight in close.
(Jaster hadn't known how to feel when he heard Jango telling a group of curious clones, that the best way to kill a trained Force-sensitive, especially if they had a kad'au, was to get in close and attack with your hands and feet or a short blade. He didn't know if that was something Obi-Wan had also overheard, or if it was something that jedi already knew about their own combat styles, but it looked like he was very purposefully parcelling out close-combatants.)
It wasn't until Obi-Wan was listing out the sixth group, that Jaster realised two things: His riduur was an extremely capable strategist, and he had managed to successfully avoid playing any strategy games with Jaster, thus hiding this particular ability of his.
If they ever did have to fight against each other, Jaster suspected it would turn into a rather spectacular bloodbath; he wondered what it said about him that a part of him wanted that, to face his riduur across a battlefield and find out who was actually the better.
Jaster hadn't, actually, noticed Boba leaving, nor had he realised that Jango had joined them, stopping just behind Seventeen and watching their battle plans form without a word, until the last group had been settled on and placed to guard the hallway outside the turbolift that led to the underwater bays of capital ships. (If anyone, be it chipped clone or the dar'jetii, managed to get one of those ships out, they could destroy the whole city before the inhabitants managed to mount any sort of defence.)
"Kenobi, a word?" Jango asked flatly.
Jaster startled a little and looked up in surprise. Seventeen also flinched and turned their head so fast, they clearly hadn't noticed Jango standing behind them.
"Of course," Obi-Wan agreed without any sign that he was surprised by Jango's appearance. "Master Yoda, could you see to sending the jedi where they need to be?"
"Done, you shall consider it," Yoda agreed, leaping down from the table, which Obi-Wan had politely helped him up onto for their planning. "See you soon enough, I shall."
Obi-Wan inclined his head, even as he turned to Seventeen and said, "I leave organising the Alphas to you, dear one."
"'Lek, Alor," Seventeen agreed.
"Can you also manage the Nulls?" Obi-Wan asked; a valid question, as it was no secret that the Nulls only willingly listened to Kal. They would follow orders from Jango, and were reasonable enough with Jaster, but they took orders from the rest of the Cuy'val Dar as mere suggestions, and laughed in the faces of the Alphas and Anakin, the few times Jaster had seen any of them butting heads.
(It occurred to Jaster that he'd never really noticed any interactions between Obi-Wan and the Nulls, although he knew there had to have been some, since their various fights with Anakin had been during the jedi combat lessons he and Obi-Wan held. Perhaps Anakin's interactions with them were just so loud, it distracted from their interactions with Obi-Wan?)
Seventeen wrinkled their nose in disgust, but nodded. "Ordo will bitch, but he'll listen."
"Thank you," Obi-Wan said, then turned to Jaster as Seventeen got up, starting to comm their vode as they headed for the exit. "Jaster, can I leave it to you to whip the trainers into shape?"
Jaster snorted at his wording. "I think I can manage that," he agreed as he stood. "But, Ob'ika?" Obi-Wan glanced up at him, something cautious in his pale eyes. "Yes?"
Jaster leaned in, as though for a kiss-Jango let out a loud sigh-but stopped just shy of contact and murmured, "When this is over, you owe me a game of chess, even if I have to tie you down."
Obi-Wan huffed out a surprised-sounding laugh. "Ah, yes. I suppose I have been-"
Jaster shut him up with a kiss, because his riduur had a bad habit of talking just because he could, and they were, unfortunately, currently working on borrowed time.
As he pulled away and straightened, he glanced at Jango and warned, "Don't break each other. I'll be in the bedroom."
Jaster contacted one of the Cuy'val Dar from each of the groups, told them who else to comm and where they would be setting up-twenty members in each group meant they were large enough to set up shifts, and each of the patrol points had at least one unused flat or classroom nearby, which could be used for a rest point-then quickly changed into his beskar'gam and exited the bedroom to check on his ad and riduur.
He found Jango glaring at Obi-Wan over what looked very much like a bag of beskar'gam, while Obi-Wan had folded his hands into his tunic sleeves and was wearing a polite little smile.
"-not just my parent's spouse," Jango was snarling in Mando'a, "you're also the Mand'alor's spouse."
"I fail to see why that would require me to wear beskar'gam," Obi-Wan replied.
Jango let out a sort of snarl-growl that Jaster suspected meant violence was about to occur, and he stepped forward to rest a hand on his shoulder. "Peace, Jan'ika," he murmured, and Jango huffed, but relaxed his shoulders. "That's yours?" he asked, because Jango hadn't worn any of his beskar'gam since after Tyranus' death; since he'd removed it the first time after he gave Jaster his ka'rta beskar.
Jango gave a jerk of a nod.
(Jaster had-after it became clear that the knitting and crocheting sessions were to become a new normal for them-suggested that teaching the clones new skills was a step in the right direction, and that he could start wearing some of his beskar'gam again, if he wanted. Jango had replied, "I can start earning it back when all of them are free."
Jaster hadn't asked if he'd meant free from the chips or free from any potential claim the Republic had on them, because he'd already made it clear that he thought Jango had earnt the right; in the end, it would have to be up to Jango to decide what 'free' meant, and what he owed to his ade to repay his debt to them.
Either way, Jaster knew that Jango didn't believe himself deserving of his beskar'gam yet, so it would simply be left to sit, useless, in his flat. Offering it to Obi-Wan, his new buir-Jaster doubted he would ever call Obi-Wan that, but he had recognised that Obi-Wan was Jaster's riduur, was family-made sense. Especially since there was a very good chance that Obi-Wan would be facing this dar'jetii, just as he had Tyranus.)
Jaster glanced at his riduur, eyeing his smile-clearly false-the wariness in his eyes, and the way he'd hidden his hands-a nervous tell, Jaster had eventually realised. "Obi-Wan," he said quietly, "you are a strategist; you must see the benefit of wearing beskar'gam to battle."
Obi-Wan's smile seemed to shudder, like he was having to fight to keep his mouth in that shape. "I know what giving beskar'gam means," he said.
Jaster frowned at that, wondering why that would be something to hold him back.
And then, as Jango drew in an angry breath and opened his mouth to say something they would probably all regret, Jaster realised what was going on, and he covered his ad's mouth with one hand. "You know one of the things it can mean," he said, and Jango stilled.
This was not the first time Jaster-or Boba, or Vhonte, or a couple of other members of the Cuy'val Dar-had discovered that Obi-Wan-and the clones, although, they had been less of a surprise-did not have a perfect understanding of Mando culture. He knew a lot-between his romance novels, whatever other books he'd been given access to, conversations he'd heard when the speakers weren't minding their volume, and what he'd learnt from Mando'ade he'd spoken to directly-but he hadn't grown up with the culture, and he'd spent a significant period of time among the Evaar'ade or running from Kyr'tsad.
Obi-Wan blinked, his smile dropping and the wariness in his pale eyes turning to uncertainty. "I- It doesn't always mean...a relationship?"
Jango let out an outraged sound into the hand Jaster still had over his mouth.
Jaster sighed. "No. That is only the meaning when pieces are traded, and only if all parties agree that is the meaning; pieces traded among friends can be meant as a promise to watch each other's backs, or a manner to indicate they are as close as siblings."
"...oh," Obi-Wan said.
Jaster nodded. "You know that beskar'gam is traditionally handed down through clans," he said, rather than asked, because they'd had that discussion when Jaster had finally explained that Vhonte considered Obi-Wan a part of her family and that, because she had given him his first beskar'gam-which was apparently in display in the Jet'yaim's library, both at the request of their librarian, and to ensure it was kept safe, as the alternative would have been being shoved under Obi-Wan's bed; jedi, of course, did not wear any armour, and full beskar'gam would give entirely the wrong impression about allegiances, besides-other Mando'ade would view him as part of her clan, and therefore Mando'ad, if an unusual one.
(Obi-Wan had started referring to Vhonte by her given name, rather than her clan name, after the conversation. The first time he'd called Vhonte that to her face, she'd swept him into a hug, and started calling him 'Ben'ika' instead of just 'Ben'. Which had been a series of happy changes that Jaster hadn't expected, but hadn't been upset by; judging by their reactions to the changes, both were quite happy to be able to openly treat each other more familiarly.)
"Yes," Obi-Wan agreed. "This is...similar to that?"
"Yes and no," Jaster admitted. "You are clan, through me, but this is less a giving, more a loaning, am I correct?" he asked Jango, finally removing his hand from over his ad's mouth.
Jango was wearing his embarrassed scowl. "It's not proper for the Mand'alor's spouse to go into battle naked," he muttered. "I'm not using it."
Jaster nodded. "It's not a common practise," he explained, just a tad dry, "since most Mando'ade have beskar'gam, but it's not completely unheard of, when one Mando'ad is waiting for a piece to be fixed or resized, or if they haven't earnt a specific piece, yet, and they're heading into a battle that a friend or family member cannot take part in, for that friend or family member to loan them the piece they need. With the understanding that they have to make it back and return it."
"Naturally," Obi-Wan muttered in Basic, before switching back to Mando'a to say, "A loan just for this battle. I...understand."
"But?" Jango snarled.
Obi-Wan winced. "I haven't worn beskar'gam in seventeen years, and my fighting style has changed...significantly."
"Why don't you try it on and try one of your katas," Jaster suggested. "If pieces don't work, you can leave them off; any additional protection is better than none."
"That is true," Obi-Wan agreed, and inclined his head. "Very well; I accept the loan, and promise to return them to you, Fe-" He stopped, looking uncertain.
Jaster glanced at his ad to find him visibly fighting with himself for a moment, before he grimaced and muttered, "Jango."
"Thank you, Jango," Obi-Wan replied quietly, hesitated, and then added, "You're welcome to use my given name, or the cover name Vhonte prefers, when you're comfortable with them."
Jango let out a disgruntled grunt and thrust the bag of beskar'gam at Obi-Wan, who accepted it at last. "Where should I go?" he demanded, looking between Jaster and Obi-Wan, suggesting he was willing to listen to either of them.
Jaster looked at Obi-Wan, since he'd been the one placing their verde, and he shrugged and inclined his head. "Anakin and Gamma are in charge of keeping watch over the young children, while the CCs have watch over the older clones still awaiting surgery; you're welcome to join either group."
Jango nodded slowly. "I sent Boba to the younger children, so I think I will follow them."
Obi-Wan inclined his head. "Would you like me to comm Rex and let them know you're headed their way?"
Jango snorted. "Probably should," he admitted. "Wouldn't be the first time Kote shot me, but I'm not wearing beskar, this time."
Jaster had heard from Fox about the post-curfew excursion-trying to figure out where one of their batchmates had vanished to during latemeal-which had resulted in them being caught by Jango, just back from a job and very tired, which had given Kote the advantage necessary to leap forward, grab one of Jango's blasters, and shoot him, yelling for their batchmates to run. The incident had almost seen Kote named something far less polite-Jango had apparently spent the next two weeks referring to Kote as 'Jaro'-before their actions during a training exercise had Jango calling them 'Kote'par', which was shortened to 'Kote' by their batchmates, and ended up sticking.
By the amused turn of Obi-Wan's mouth as he pulled out his comm, he had also heard the story.
Rex grumbled a little-and Anakin grumbled a lot, in the background-but admitted that they'd all assumed Jango would end up with the littles, as soon as Boba had shown up and said his buir had sent him to them, so at least it wasn't a surprise.
Jaster helped Obi-Wan put on the beskar'gam, and while they had to give up on the whole haalas-more because Jango was broader across the chest and it just didn't fit, than because it got in the way of his fighting-the bes'marbure-those did impede Obi-Wan's fighting style-and the buy'ce-which Obi-Wan admitted he could probably use, but he wasn't enough familiar with Jango's personal settings, and he didn't want to accidently set something off or switch the display to watching behind him while facing the dar'jetii, which Jaster could understand-he did end up wearing a reasonable amount of it, mostly hidden by his outer tunic.
Jaster ended up with Obi-Wan and the other jedi master duellists-he was not, actually, surprised that his riduur was among that number, although he honestly hadn't expected Yoda to be one; the others were a grey-skinned Roonan who introduced themself as Master Zeblax, and a dark brown-skinned human or near who told Jaster to called them Ekun (and who Obi-Wan murmured was Knight Ekundayo Uzoma)-presumably in case the Cuy'val Dar or clones comm'd him instead of Obi-Wan.
The jedi, unsurprisingly, decided to pass the time meditating, and Jaster sighed and sat himself against Obi-Wan's back and set about running some of the easy weapons and beskar'gam maintenance he'd been letting slide, since they had seemed safe on Kamino.
Chapters One Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten Glossary
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